Can I travel from South Korea to North Korea?

Below is a question we get with quite a bit of frequency. Please see the answer below.

Thanks!

QUESTION: I am going to transit in Seoul in September, 2013, is it possible for me to tour North Korea from Seoul? We are a party of 8.

ANSWER:

Dear,

Unfortunately you cannot go directly from South Korea to North Korea. You would have to fly to China and then from there to Pyongyang (flights from Vladivostok in Russia are also available once a week). If you would like to have a glimpse of the DPRK and are unable to go to all the way to Pyongyang then you may want to visit the DMZ (Panmunjom) from South Korea as there are day trips arranged from there. You may have to apply sometime beforehand so please do check about this.